The whole world is a-buzz over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and its seizure of the Crimea, Ukraine’s southern peninsula on the Black Sea.
What to do?
Frankly, I think a good, strong showing of mettle is in order.
Support the new Ukrainian government that has succeeded the murderous, kleptocratic thug Viktor Yanukovych.
Suspend Russia’s membership in the G-20 and G-8.
Put some dings in Russia’s economy.
Squeeze Russia with backdoor diplomacy.
Vladimir Putin is a vicious thug. Stand up to him. Make him understand that there are consequences for acting like a vicious thug.
Now wait just a second, Mr. Professor. Aren’t you being a being a bit hypocritical there? Didn’t you, just last week, condemn the United States for having invaded Iraq, and wring your hands over the impending pullout of U.S. forces from Afghanistan, openly wondering if we should stay longer?
Yes. Yes I did. And here’s why it’s not hypocritical of me to call for strong measures against Russia now.
First, I was critical of the U.S. invasion of Iraq before it even happened, just as I’m critical of the Russian invasion of Ukraine now. That’s a consistent stance against aggression.
Second, I feel the United States has moral debts to Iraq and Afghanistan precisely because it invaded them. Likewise, Russia is now incurring a moral debt to Ukraine for invading it. Although good luck collecting.
Finally, I wish some big bad ass country had stood up to us as we prepared to invade Iraq. I wish some important head of state had told George W. Bush he was being a bellicose asshole and to knock it the fuck off.
I mean, millions of people around the world protested, god bless ’em. Took to the streets and everything. But where were the leaders?
Oh wait, many of them did actually condemned the U.S invasion of Iraq.
U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan called the war “illegal.”
Nelson Mandela called U.S. actions a “threat to world peace.”
French President Jacques Chirac said the U.S. invasion “made the world more dangerous.”
The Brazilian President Lula chided the United States for defying the United Nations.
The Vatican condemned it as a “war of aggression.”
In fact, the governments of 54 nations, from Algeria to Vietnam, officially protested the war.
And of course the United States went ahead anyway. Just like the current crop of moral outrage won’t stop Russia from shitting all over Ukraine.
But the moral outrage is important. Strongly condemning aggressive state violence is the right thing to do. And so we must condemn it no matter the aggressor. Whether it be our own nation or our former Cold War enemy.
When a big nation beats the shit out of a little nation for no good reason, we must point fingers and issue loud condemnations, even if they accomplish nothing. Because taking a moral stance is a moral responsibility during times of crisis.
So please. Somebody punch Vladimir Putin in the face.
